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Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience

 
Read more at: Study reveals novel aspects of the human metabolic response to hypoxia
Study reveals novel aspects of the human metabolic response to hypoxia

Study reveals novel aspects of the human metabolic response to hypoxia

27 February 2020

In a report published in the New England Journal of Medicine, Dr Andrew Murray and Dr Katie O’Brien of PDN, along with an international team of collaborators, describe new aspects of the human metabolic response to low oxygen levels


Read more at: Research in sheep suggests possible early test for fetal heart health
Research in sheep suggests possible early test for fetal heart health

Research in sheep suggests possible early test for fetal heart health

5 December 2019

New study led by Dino Giussani shows that changes in heart rate due to hypoxia in advaced pregnancies could be used to predict the future heart health of babies


Read more at: Placenta changes could mean male offspring of older mums more likely to develop heart problems in later life
Placenta changes could mean male offspring of older mums more likely to develop heart problems in later life

Placenta changes could mean male offspring of older mums more likely to develop heart problems in later life

28 November 2019

Changes occur in the placenta in older pregnant mothers leading to a greater likelihood of poor health in their male offspring, a study in rats by CTR has shown


Read more at: Exercise in pregnancy improves health of obese mothers by restoring their tissues
Exercise in pregnancy improves health of obese mothers by restoring their tissues

Exercise in pregnancy improves health of obese mothers by restoring their tissues

30 August 2019

Exercise immediately prior to and during pregnancy restores key tissues in the body, making them better able to manage blood sugar levels and lowering the risk of long term health problems, suggests new research carried out in mice by CTR


Read more at: Amygdala neurons simulate decisions of social partners
Amygdala neurons simulate decisions of social partners

Amygdala neurons simulate decisions of social partners

11 April 2019

Fabian Grabenhorst and Wolfram Schultz have identified special types of brain cells that may allow us to simulate the decision-making processes of others, thereby reconstructing their state of mind and predicting their intentions. Dysfunction in these ‘simulation neurons’ may help explain difficulties with social interactions in conditions such as autism and social anxiety.


Read more at: Premature babies could benefit from changes to drugs administered to at-risk mothers
Premature babies could benefit from changes to drugs administered to at-risk mothers

Premature babies could benefit from changes to drugs administered to at-risk mothers

21 March 2019

Research by Dino Giussani's group have suggested that subtle changes to the drugs administered to mothers threatened with preterm birth or to premature babies could further improve clinical treatment and help increase their safety


Read more at: Heart disease risk begins in the womb, study in sheep suggests
Heart disease risk begins in the womb, study in sheep suggests

Heart disease risk begins in the womb, study in sheep suggests

23 January 2019

Offspring whose mothers had a complicated pregnancy may be at greater risk of heart disease in later life, according to a new study in sheep by Dino Giussani's lab


Read more at: Placentas adapt to help keep babies healthy when mothers have poor diets or low oxygen during pregnancy
Placentas adapt to help keep babies healthy when mothers have poor diets or low oxygen during pregnancy

Placentas adapt to help keep babies healthy when mothers have poor diets or low oxygen during pregnancy

21 January 2019

CTR researchers have discovered the placenta regulates how much oxygen and nutrients it transports to babies during challenging pregnancies in a study using mice to model conditions in the womb


Read more at: ‘Mini-placentas’ could provide a model for early pregnancy
‘Mini-placentas’ could provide a model for early pregnancy

‘Mini-placentas’ could provide a model for early pregnancy

29 November 2018

PDN researchers say that new ‘mini-placentas’ – a cellular model of the early stages of the placenta – could provide a window into early pregnancy and help transform our understanding of reproductive disorders. Details of this new research are published today in the journal Nature.


Read more at: How flat sheets of cells become tubular organs
How flat sheets of cells become tubular organs

How flat sheets of cells become tubular organs

7 August 2018

New research by Guy Blanchard in collaboration with the LMB Cell Biology Division gives new insight into how flat layers of cell tissue develop into 3D structures